1 Pottstown murder suspect to stand trial, 1 has hearing continued

LOWER POTTSGROVE — The two suspects in a late-night shooting outside a North Charlotte Street bar on March 22 were in court again on Friday morning and each of their cases moved closer to trial.

Maurice Andrews Jr., 19, of Pottstown, and Michael Hinton, 26, of Norristown, are charged with murder in the first-, second- and third-degree for the death of Victor Enrique Bonilla Baez, also known as Vincent Taylor.

Andrews appeared in District Judge Edward C. Kropp Sr.’s courtroom for the second time at 10 a.m. for his preliminary hearing, after it had been continued once. The hearing was continued again and rescheduled for May 31 at 10 a.m. in the same courtroom.

At least 15 members of Andrews’ family and friends turned out for the hearing and were visibly frustrated when the hearing had been continued.

There were at least 20 members of Hinton’s family in the courtroom to show their support during his hearing.

During his April 10 arraignment in Kropp’s courtroom, Hinton had to use a wheelchair due to the injuries he suffered the night Baez was killed. On Friday, he walked into the courtroom on his own.

In the waiting room, people were keeping to themselves but the relatively calm atmosphere turned tense after Hinton was walked from his closed off waiting area, past some of Baez’s family and into the courtroom.

Nearly all the seats were full of family from both sides, and the back walls were lined with police officers and detectives from local departments and Montgomery County.

Hinton was visibly agitated and anxious waiting for his hearing to begin. He placed his forehead on the table multiple times, bounced his legs and looked back toward his family.

But the hearing did not last long.

Hinton waived all his charges to Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas and his right to a preliminary hearing. Members of Baez’s family sat behind the prosecution’s table on the left side of the courtroom; sometimes embracing each other.

Hinton’s next court appearance will be at the Montgomery County Courthouse in Norristown on July 3 at 9:30 a.m.

At 2:17 a.m. on March 22, Pottstown police were dispatched to the 300 block of Jefferson Avenue after a gunshot victim was reported.

When officers arrived, they found Baez in the street near the café with multiple gunshot wounds to his torso. Baez was transferred to Pottstown Memorial Medical Center and pronounced dead shortly after his arrival.

Later that morning, police apprehended Hinton after he was found by Montgomery County Constable Mark Gibson walking with a considerable limp. Andrews was at large for more than a month after the shooting.

Both Andrews and Hinton are being held at the Montgomery County Correctional Facility, because their charges are considered non-bailable offenses.